4. SRI SESHADRI SWAMIGAL OF

'ంు| ుౌ ఏస|శష ః|n, dు స|ఫd ష

That we can make our life sublime,

And, departing, leave behind us,

Footprints in the sands of time" _ A Psalm of Life

H.W. Long fellow

This golden saying is true for all times and climes in the world. India is the Holy Land of Vedas and Saints. our Scriptures say that the individual soul in the man is the same as the Supreme Soul itself (sublime) and that the purpose in life is to realise this sublime identity with the Supreme Soul. The Upanishad says about the Soul "I am non-dual, the residue of everything, Blissful, actionless, beyond all proof". To know this is self realisation. The path towards this end lies along the Vedicindicated branches of Karma (action), Bhakthi (devotion) and Jnana (knowledge). No doubt one may understand all this in theory by a careful study if the texts with the help of a sound teacher. But to bring it into action and daily life, to experience that great oneness with that Supreme Soul, to forget this body and all its actions even while one is living in this body, to treat the entire seen-world as perishable and non-existent in the real sense, to tune the mind to withdraw it from the senses and to keep it in constant touch with the Suprene Soul - - these are easy steps to speak but difficult to be put into action. Every human being is Expected to follow the above path to self realisation. But very few succeed. It is this few that constitute the Jnani, Saint or Jivanmuktha in this world. It is said that for every one crore of human beings in Inda, one is born as Jivanmuktha. But they do not swarm the citadels and towns ; they resort to the forest or solitude for penance. By chance and for our benefit, some of these great men lived in towns in the midst of worldly men anb yet lived a life above the same; though moving with the public yet they were not in any way affected by that contact. They kept their mind above all this worldly life. They served as object lessons for other thinking people to adopt, for they actually followed the path indicated in our Scriptures.

Each saint has chalked out a different though definite line to reach the goal of realisation,. We have therefore many courses of study open for our choice in all these Saints. It is up to us to choose the line suitable to our mind and experience in life. It is therefore very essential that we should read the lives of all saints in this vast country, who were practical laboratories in this school of Self-Realisation. Various have been the ways of these Saints. Some adopted the yoga marga and the Kundalini vidya; Some took to the simple-looking yet absolutely - sincere Bhakti cult; Some experienced the pure Jnanamarga, adumberated in the Upanishads. The Bhagavad Gita indicates the Jnani as the Sthita Pragjna (Ch. II) and describes his life and behaviour.

To this class of Sthita pragjnas belong the great Saint of Tiruvannamalai, Sri Seshadri Swamigal, who after a life of 40 years in that town cast off his mortal coils on 4-1-1929. His body is interned at Tiruvannamalai. Regular worship is being done at the Samadhi in the vedic style.

Born of a very great orthodox family, noted for vedic study and astrology, at Conjeevaram, the boy Seshadri exhibited the divinity in him even when he was two years of age; when his mother took him to the temple he wanted a bronze toy Krishna which was for sale for 12nP each. The vendor gave one free to the boy and to surprise of the pedlar, his 1000 toys were sold out that day. He came and accosted the child the next day (as "Tangak Kai") as boy with the Golden Touch". The child lost his father in his 14th year and it fell to the lot of his Mother, Maragathambal to bring up boy Seshadri and his younger brother Narasimhan. Sri kamakoti Sastrigal, the maternal grand father of the boy recognised the great futurity in the boy, Seshadri, and put his to study the sastras under his friends. It was more a revision for the boy, who was a born-Jnani. He became an expert very soon in all the sastras. He used to go to the temple or the cremation ground and do Japam incessantly and never cared to remain at home or with his relatives. This caused an anxiety to the mother who wanted to turn his mind to the family. A proposal for marriage was rightly rejected by Boy-Seshadri. The boy shunned life more and more. In his movements we find the characteristics of a developing Jnani. We could study how he discarded all attachment to things in life one by one as stated in the Gita and other holy texts. Every one of us should not skip over this part of the life-history but should tarry a while and try to understand it and bring it into our own life, wherever possible. They are the practical classes in Vedanta.

Boy Seshadri was a puzzle to all his relatives. Looked up in a room he would not be seen even though the lock is there; for days he would not eat any food; he never cared for the body or its comforts, whether it is washed well or well dressed or protected againsy Sun, Rain or Storm, whether is is lying on a stone or a soft bed. He would dis-card the inviting man but would enter an uninvited house. This increased in later years.

Maragathambal, the mother, was in her last days and she called the boy and gave hi as it wer her last advice; She repeated th sloka of Bhaja Govindam "Sat Sangatve Nis Sangatvam" etc and called out "Arunachala" thrice and closed her eyes forever. This was the Upadesam for Boy Seshadri and he at once reachedx Tiruvannamalai of Arunachala - Fame and remained there for all the rest of his life, 40 years till 1929.

At Tiruvannamalai he would go to the temple of Devi or Lord Subrahmanya and used to be always moving inside the town. Mystic were his ways and very mysterious his words and their results. The history of the Saint at this stage is very interesting and instructive to the aspirant in Jnana Marga. The very sight of these saints will be a step in aid for our spritual growth.

These great saints never cared for the body they lived in, either during their life on earth or have any desire to contanct life after the body is gone. But the grace of Sri Seshadri Swamigal is peculiar. His body was interned at Tiruvannamalai but his spirit could not be restrained like that, He has reappeared in another form as a spirit with the same method of contanct and teaching as he had at Tiruvannanalai but his spirit could not be restrained like that. He has reappeared in another form as a spirit with the same method of contact and teaching as he had at Tiruvannamalai before 1929. He found a medium in Mr. Sivarama Krishna Iyer who belonged to a village, Veerappanchatram, two miles from Erode Railway Station. Sivaramkrishna Iyr's mother was Smt. Kaveri Ammal, a saintly lady who lived with her husband (a Government employee in the Revenue Department at Erode) and had four sons and two daughters. The last son is this Sivaramakrishna iyer. Even from very early years this lady Kaveri Ammal exhibited signs of saintly life. She did not take rice and other food for nearly forty years but lived on fruits, milk or sandal-Paste-water. She was an ardent Muruga Baktai and used to perform pooja daily between 4 and 6 A.m. in her house to which only few of the relatives were admitted, She had developed powers like Sri Ayyaval of Tiruvasanallur; she once made the Cauvery water follow from the top of her pooja room and give her a bath when she could not go to the river which runs about one mile from her village. Many more are mystic deeds of this saintly lady, which remained unknown to the outside world throughout her life. Once she went to Tiruvannamalai to attend a function in her relative's house and stayed in a chatram and was doing pooja early in the morning, when suddenly Sri Seshadri swamigal appeared in her pooja room and asked for food - She gave him the plaintain fruit kept for her pooja. Sri Swamigal ate half of it and thrust the other half in the mouth of Sivaramakrishan, (a young boy of seven years) who was just running into the house. This happened to be, possibly, a Diksha and later on this Sivaramakrishnan became the Medium.

More than twenty years thereafter, at the request of this saintly lady during her prayers, Sri Swamigal told her in a dream that he would appear in the sprit form through the medium of Sivaramakrishnan. And he did come and those who had seen the saint in the life-time were able to recognise the same old speach and thoughts in this spirit form also. At first the Medium Mr. Sivaramakrishnan would touch the plan-chette, made of thin wood with twin hings at the back-bottom and a hole in the from portion hold a pencil (ava ilable in many places in the market) and the pencil will be inserted in the hyle. A paper placed under this plachette would record the movements of the planchette, which is guided by the shirit, what is found written on the paper will be read as the spirit's message. Later on, no paper was used but the medium would feel in his mind what he should write and he would spell it out orally. Still later, it developed into a trance when the medium will not know what he says but the audience will have a long instructive and authoritative lecture for two or three hours, the medium speaking all the while as an ordinary himself not knowing it, After the trance is over the medium would ask those present as to what happened during the trance. Books and pamphlets were written with aid of the planchette through which the Saint Seshadri Swamigal spoke. A monthly Tamil Journal by name, "Jeevya Pradarsini" and later "Moksha Pradarsini" was run for some years with articles of the Saint given through the planchette.

The bhakthas of this Saint organised themselves into an association and had it registered under the Societies Registration Act and named as Sri Seshadri Swamigal Adhishtanam Association, Unjalpur. At Unjalur, 20 miles from Erode there is a yoga-samadi for this saint built by the members of this association. Here pooja according to the vedic injunctions is being carried on every day under the control of this association. Another equally popular and effective Saint Sri Kolandaiananda Swamigal of Madurai who lived at Madurai till he cast of his mortal coil in the year 1932, and who samadhi is at madurai also appeared in the spirit form through this Medium Sivaramakrishna iyer. The members of the above association built the Samadhi of Sri Kolandaiananda Swamigal at Arasaradi, Madurai, and the pooja is being carried on as per the sastras at the samadhi by this association. The Samadhi at Tiruvannamalai where the body of Sri Seshadri Swamigal was interned in the year 1929 is all in the custody and management of this association and the pooja is being regularly conducted at the Samadhi at Tiruvannamalai. Many important and devoted sishyas of the Swamigal at Tiruvannamalai are members of this association and are rendering very great help in the above said management of the Adhishtanam at Tiruvannamalai.

We were unfortunate in having lost Mr. Sivaramakrishna Iyer who passed away in the 61st year on 3-3-1974. But the grace of Sri Swamigal is supreme. Both the saints had made Mr. Seshadri, the son of Sivaramakrishna Iyer, their common medium and we are not having the same presentation of the saints and their philosophy through this medium as we used to get from the old medium, Sivaramakrishna Iyer, both through the planchette and in trance.

The history of this great Saint Sri Seshadri Swamigal would have been lost to the world but for the kindness and erudition of a great Sanskrit Scholar, Kuziumani Narayana Sastrigal, who lived at Madurai till he cast of his mortal coil in the year 1932, and whose samadhi is at Madurai also appeared in the spirit form through this Medium Sivaramakrishna Iyer. The members of the above association built the Samadhi of Sri kolandaiananda Swamigal at Arasaradi, Madurai, and the pooja is being carried on as per the sastras at the samadhi by this association. The Samadhi and Tiruvannamalai where the body of Sri Seshadri Swamigal was interned in the year 1929 is also in the custody and management of this association and the pooja is being regularly conducted at the Samadhi at Tiruvannamalai. Many important and devoted sishyas of the Swamigal at Tiruvannamalai are members of this association and are rendering very great help in the above said management of the Adhishtanam at Tiruvannamalai.

We are unfortunate in having lost Mr. Sivaramakrishna Iyer who passed away in her 61st year on 3-3-1974. but the grace of Sri Swamigal is supreme. Both the saints have made Mr. Seshadri, the son of Sivaramakrishna Iyer, their common medium and we are not having the same presentation of the saints and their philosophy through this medium as we used to get from the old medium, Sivaramakrishna Iyer, both through the planchette and in trance.

The history of this great Saint Sri Seshadri Swamigal would have been lost to the world but for the kindness and erudition of a great Sanskrit, Scholar, Kuziumani Narayana Sastrigal, who lived with the Saint and observed his at close quarters and has written the life history in Tamil. Being a vedanti and a scholar, the writer has put the whole thing in the best manner possible for assimilation by the reader. This association holds the copyright for this book. It is the desire of some of the sishyas that the book should be translated into Telugu for those who do not know Tamil and hence permission sought for has been granted for translation and publication of one edition to Sri. Bulusu Suryaprakasa Sastry, Founder Member Sadhana Grandha Mandali, Tenali, Guntur District. May those that read the book got the benefit of knowing the Saint through the book. If they are interested they can meet the Swamigal through the medium mentioned above. The association is having its office at Sri Sesha Nilayam, Sixth Street, Tatabad, Coimbatore -12. Correspondence can be have with the Secretary of the association at that address. Lectures of the Saint are being held with the medium of Sri Seshadri, son of the late Sivaramakrishna Iyer, both at Coimbatore and Madurai on certain dates. Some lectures are also being delivered at Madras where the medium is employee in business. Information on these can be had from Secretary of the association.

తిరువణ్ణామలైలోని శ్రీశేషాద్రిస్వామివారు

మరియు

జీవుడు - ఉపాధి (అనుసంధాన కర్తలు)

మనము మన జీవితము మహోన్నతముగ జేసికొనగలమా మరణసమయమున కాలమనెడు ఇసుకయందు, మన పాదముద్రలను మన వెనుక వదలగలము అని మహాపురుషుల జీవితములు మనకు జ్ఞాపకము చేయుచున్నది.

A Palsm of Life

H.W. Long Fellow

ఈ సువర్ణసూక్తి ప్రపంచమునందలి సర్వదేశకాలముకును వర్తించును. భారతదేశము వేదములకును మహర్షులకు నిలయమైన పవిత్ర దేశము. మానవునిలోని జీవాత్మ పరమాత్మయేయనియు, దివ్యమైన ఈ జీవాత్మ పరమాత్మల యైక్యము సాధించుటయే మన జీవితమునకు లక్ష్యమనియు, మన మత గ్రంథములు తెలియజేయుచున్నవి. ''నేను అద్వయము, సర్వాశేషము, ఆనందఘనము, నిష్ర్కయము, సర్వప్రమాణాతీతము.

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